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K. S. BLANUHARD.

GAB. COUPLING.

N0.265,011u PatentedSept.26,1882;.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

KIRK S. BLANOHARD, OF CLARENDON, NEW YORK.

CAR-COUPLING.

SPECIFICATION forming part of' Letters Patent No. 265,011, dated September 26, 1882,

Application'filed May 526, i882. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, KIRK S. BLANOHARD, of Clarendon, Orleans county, New York, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Oar-Couplings; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanying dra'wings,in which- Figure 1 is a sectional side elevation of the coupling attached to two cars. Fig. 2 is a front elevation of a car with the coupling attached.

'bars removed from place.

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the two'draw- Fig.4 is a plan of one end of the draw-bar with the common coupling-link attached. Fig. 5 is an end view of Fig. 4.

My improvement relates to couplings in which the draw-bars are provided with hookheads that engage together and are operated by lever-work attached to the end of the car.

The invention consists in the construction and arrangement of parts hereinafter more fully'described. g

In the drawings, A A show two cars. which are approaching each other to be coupled.

B B are bearings for the draw-bars, consisting of castings bolted to'the under side of the cars and made hollow and open on their under side.

G (J are draw-bars, which rest in the bearings. Each of the draw-bars consists of a bar or shank, a, which has a pivot, 12, passing out through a slot, 0, in the bearing, on which isa washer, d, and behind the bar is a'sliding block or follower, f, pressed forward by a coiled spring, 9. This allows the draw-bar to yield,

while at the same time it can turn up or down on the pivot.

h is a double hook-head on the front end of the draw-bar, the end being pointed or rounded. A central longitudinal groove, t, is made in the top of the hook-head, so that the top is really divided into two books for the purpose of receiving the common coupling-link, when it is desired to use the same, as will presently be described.

k 7; are two vertical lugs just back of the,

of the lugs k k are curved and concentric with the pivot of the draw-bar, and in its natural posit-ion,when no strain is applied, these parts are separated some distance apart.

D is a vertical shaft, resting in boxes or bearings l l on the front end of the car, and having a free end movement.

m is a square loop or stirrup, which embraces the draw-bar back of the lugs, and is attached to the lower end of the shaft. The'loop moves up and down in slots or grooves n n in the sides of the bearing B, by which it is kept-in place.

0 is acoiled spring around the shaft D, resting at top and bottom against the boxes I t or other stops.

p isa pin attached to the shaft, and passing out between the coils of the spring.

G G are two levers, pivoted at W to the end of the car, the inner ends of the levers being centered, so that it matters not which side the hook-heads strike together, the spring will yield in either direction, allowing the hook-heads to engage, and when engaged the spring will hold them with the necessary tension. This form of thespringis speciallyadapted to allow action in both directions, by which means if one car is higher orlower than the other its draw-head can pass either under or over the other drawhead.

When the hooks are engaged the point of one book projects over and rests between the lugs 7c of the other draw-bar, one on the upper side and the other 'on the lower side, so that both hooks are inclosed and cannot slip out of engagement sidewise by the rocking of the cars or from other causes. Sufficient play, however, is given to the hooks between the lugs to allow ease of motion, and to allow the turning of curves in the road.

In case it is desired to connect two cars one of which has my improved coupling and the other the common link-coupling, the coupling.- link at is placed with one side in the slot or groove 13, the other outside the hook, as shown in Figset and 5,and a pin, v,is passed through 5 holes 20 w in the hook-head above the link, by

which the link is securely held, and in a horizontal position. The pin has a counter-weight, t, by which it is held against slipping out. The link thus extended can be guided into the 10 open draw-head of the other car by simply raising or lowering the draw-head O, as the case may require. The slot 1' in the hook is necessary to accommodate the coupling-link, since the link is too narrow to embrace the [5 whole width of the hook.

In'this invention the cars can be coupled and uncoupled Without going between them.

Having thus described my invention, I claim- 20 1. In a car-coupling, the combination of the pivoted draw-bar O, the bearing B, the loop or stirrup m, embracing the draw-bar, and resting in grooves of the bearin g, the vertical shaft D, attached to the loop, the coiled spring 0, resting around the shaft, the pin 11, attached to the 25 ter the draw-bar and levers by acting in both 5 directions, as described.

In witness whereof I have hereunto signed my name in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

KIRK s. BLANGHARD.

Witnesses:

1t. F. Oseoon, WM. J. MOPHERSON. 

